Connected Learning

KSDS teachers, staff and administrators have worked to assure that our students maintain their continuum of learning while at home.

All Grades

• We are using Google Classroom to support our Distance Learning model
• All students, K-8, have their own school email accounts so they can access Google Classroom
• Assignments are posted daily to Google Classroom
• Each student follows a schedule based on his or her classes that includes Zoom sessions, independent assignments, and time for the entire grade to join together for programs including K-8 Ta’am Shabbat

Lower School

Overview:

• • • Lower School classes are a hybrid  of live Zoom classes and asynchronous assignments and activities
    • New material is presented during Zoom sessions, and on the other days the students practice, reinforce, and apply their learning in hands-on activities, traditional paper-and-pencil exercises, games, and computer-based formats
    • Live full-class and small-group Zoom sessions support the social/emotional development that is part of a Krieger Schechter LS education
    • In a LS Tefillah service and a K-8 Ta’am Shabbat, we celebrate our Judaism as a school community each week
    • The LS weekly schedule includes live Zoom “specials” in art, PE, music, and library 
    • All LS Google Classrooms will have Zoom links in the same location. Once you enter the Google Classroom and click on Classwork at the top of the page, you will find a Topic labeled Zoom with all Zoom links relevant to the Classroom.
    • All classwork, homework and required materials will be posted under Classwork in Google Classroom, and any required materials lists will be posted by 5pm the night before Zoom sessions.
    • Where possible, we request that parents/students post completed student work to Google Classroom as well. If you need additional support, please contact your child’s teacher and we will arrange for someone to work with you. We understand!
    • We know that Google Classroom generates a lot of emails automatically. These notifications can be turned off by the recipient, but parents/students who turn off the notifications will have to check each Google classroom for assignments and messages. Please consider which approach is best for your household. Teachers are sensitive to the number of messages sent by Google classroom, and are trying to consolidate their communications into as few messages as possible

  Grade Schedules:
  Kindergarten- KA (Frahm/Wikoff/Kahn/Shimon)
  Kindergarten- KB (Blumberg/Reznik/Levinson/Moschel)
  1st Grade
  2nd Grade
  3rd Grade
  4th Grade
  
  Grading Policy for @ Home Learning:
  Learning from home has created a challenging new learning environment for our young students, and we are incredibly proud of the way that they have adapted to this new format of schooling. For Trimester 3 report cards, Lower School will use the existing satisfactory-range grading scale for all graded curricular areas:

  E Excellent
  S Satisfactory (S-, S+)
  NI Needs Improvement

  These grades will give students the opportunity to be recognized for their efforts and learning progress during this unusual time period, while still reflecting teacher understanding of the unique challenges presented by home learning. Class comments will describe the breadth of curriculum covered during the full trimester of learning.

Middle School

Overview

• Middle School classes are a hybrid of live Zoom classes and asynchronous daily assignments
• Students have  Zoom classes according to a set schedule so parents can plan accordingly
• Middle School students are participating in Choir, PE/Recess and Tefillah each week via live Zoom
• We recognize the critical importance of the virtual, real-time connection to each other, their teachers and their school community for continuing education of the whole child
• Our attention to students’ spiritual, social, physical and emotional well-being, in addition to their continued progress in academic excellence, is central to our approach for home learning during this time

How It Works

Zoom Etiquette

FAQ

Grade Schedules:
5th Grade
6th Grade
7th Grade
8th Grade

Grading Policy for @ Home Learning: 
As part of our balanced approach during this time of home learning, the Middle School will use a Trimester 3 report card grading system that is a compromise between traditional letter grades and generalized pass/fail. Trimester 3 report card grades for all MS academic classes will be based on our existing “satisfactory”-range grading scale:

O   Outstanding (given in rare circumstances)
S+ Very Good
S   Satisfactory
S-  Needs Improvement
U   Unsatisfactory (given in rare circumstances)

We feel that these grades give students the opportunity to be recognized for their efforts and learning progress during this unusual time, while still recognizing the need for flexibility, less stress about “grades,” and teacher understanding of the unique challenges presented by home learning.

Final Exams During @ Home Learning
Teachers will continue to offer options for assignments and assessments that allow for creative demonstration of learning. Please also note that traditional cumulative year-end “final” exams will not be given this year, but teachers may assign some year-end projects or essays.